14 May up the road and back

Rest was the goal of the day.

I felt most grateful to wake without any pain – not just the mouth pain, but the body aches were gone too. I lay in bed reading reviews of various eateries nearby and picked one out for lunch.

But first there were other things to attend to like replying to wellwishers’ messages and booking accommodation for Wednesday and contacting the insurance company and chatting with My Love

And let’s not forget taking a shower at 11am

One of the comments I had received was that if there were no photos, yesterday’s procedure had not happened. So on my way to lunch….after picking up a new charging cable….

…I dropped in to the clinic.

The worried look on the receptionist’s face led me to explain all was well before explaining my predicament. She laughed and took me to the operating room. A photo of the chair was not enough – she brought up my records on the computer “because you know you had a root canal”!!

But that was yesterday. Today I was ready to eat.

It was a nondescript little place that you might walk past without noticing, but I had discovered the chef was award-winning…

…for good reason

To be honest, had I known the the lasagna would be made with mushrooms in a gravy rather than a tomato-y mince sauce, I probably would have chosen the stuffed scallops or rye-stuffed tomatoes with garlic, but the four cheese sauce on top was exquisite. The second plate was phenomenal! The beef cheeks were so tender you only had to nudge them with your cutlery and they fell apart into the rich red wine sauce. I can take or leave most pieces of meat, but I will remember this dish forever! I asked the chef afterwards how he prepared the couscous; it was the most delicious I have ever tasted. The list of ingredients he reeled off would have been hard to remember even if he’d said them in English – all I can recall now are a variety of nuts, finely chopped onion and garlic, stock, beer, red peppers, a little tomato, salt, cumin, cinnamon, paprika, a variety of herbs like parsley and others I didn’t catch – apparently it’s all about making it taste good. A true chef!

And the restaurant was close to full by the time I started eating – always a good sign.

Two hours out – up and down one street – and I was done.

Back to my attic room…

…to rest a bit more….

I tried looking at Instagram, but quickly decided that was not so much relaxing as a waste of time – a bit of a laugh, but I’d rather be creating than consuming.

I tried tv and caught up with what’s going on in the world….

Fun Fact: clapping in Spanish sign language is the same as NZSL!

But that was more depressing than restful, so I turned the tv off and did what I probably should have done right at the beginning – some cross stitch in peaceful silence….

…and then found myself singing (until I heard someone arrive in the room next door)….and thinking about the experiences I’ve been having using these prayer beads

I had made them at home before I left, including making the cross out of twigs from one of our apple trees, but the cord broke after a few weeks and I had left the beads all lying in my bumbag. When I came across an ironmonger, I picked out a cross and asked if he would put a hole in it and he offered a leather thong as well, so I remade the loop. Just like I will always associate cow bells with the Via de la Plata or Pharrell Williams’ song “Happy” with our 2014 fundraising walk for charity:water, I will carry the memories of the many places I have fingered these beads on this solo Camino as I continue the practice of using them in my life back home.